Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1887-01-15

abb. and by it oil this long imprisonment
and trouble 10 the prisoner could have been
so easily avoided ; but by all means let the
lady come forward The Governor had
roprieve made out ready to sign, so that the
prisoners lille could be spared even, itnece5-
sary, at the last moment, and waited all the
morning in his Office for that or any other
important information that might be
brought to him on which ne could have
signed the reprieve or changed the sem
tence of the courts, but none came.
Prior to the execution Capt. Frank Gun
ningham went to pay his last visit to the
condemned man, and, at the latter's re-
quest, sang the hymn, How firm founda-
ton, We saints Of the Lord" When the last
sweet notes of the sacred air had died away,
Capt. Cunningham, looking earnestly into
Ciuverius's face said to him: do you still
claim that you are innocent" Calm and
firm came the answer: 81 am innocent"
brief pause and then Capt Cunningham pun
the question: And do you believe in our
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, and believ-
ing in Him. do you assert that you are in
nocent, knowing that you must answer be
fore God 2" II can sey that | am innocent"
was al the prisoner replied to this solemn
interrogation.
To a question by reporter to Rev. DR..
Hatcher, Cluveriuss spiritual adviser, if he
thought Ciuverius was guilty, Dc. Hatcher
replied, Il have never said, and surely at
this time it would be strange for me to CON-
nit myself to that view. have no wish TO
add to the frenzed excitement which now
fills so many hearts. The poor young man
is dead and beyond the reach of human
sympathy. My opinion is of little worth,
but knew him as no other man did during
his prison life, aud while l do not wish to
discuss the matter, l must be candid enough
to say that am far from being convinced
that he merted the shameful death 10
which he has come To the query did he
make any confession or give any hint of it?"
DR.. Hatcher replied Not one word, and
nothing occurred which suggested to me
that he was struggling to keep back any
secret When the newa came that the Gov.
ernor would not interfere l was left alone
with him in the CELL and as soon as the
door was shut we kne!t in prayer. He arose
calmly and talked freely a5 to his end. |
told him that all earthly hope was dead and
that death was at hand. told him that
was the last moment when We could be to-
gether alone, and if there was anything that
he had to say there must be no delay. He
said that there was nothing. He had made
his statement and had no motive for chang
ing it,"
The Richmond Times says The Law has
been satisfied Cluverius has paid its full
penalty, but it is fervently hoped that never
again in Richmond will any man be con
victed in obedience to public clsmor, or one
executed against whom the death sentence
had virtually been pronounced before jury
| l: ., Io.r
Before Cluverius's body was cold the
My Life Trial and Conviction, by Thomas
streets and in the book stores. 1t is a well
written volume, covering 112 pages. Among
other things, he says:
1T may be q natural inquiry with the read
err of these few lines as to what are my feel
iDcs toward the girl with whose death am
charged. | have been represented as
bloodtbirsty fiend, with the cruelty OF a
tiger and the cunning OF serpent, but it is
certainly not in my heart 10 blacken her
memory. 1t is true am to suffer inno
" for her, but she is not responsible for it
and has in no way contributed to it, Her
fate was sad enough, and although | have
been charged again and again with shock
ing indifference to her sick ening death, the
charge has not been true. | nave felt as all
those who have hearts have felt, that her
death was pitiably, inexpressibly sorrowful,
:. but those who thought me guilty naturally
look for some tragic and dramatic exhibit
ton OF regret at her death Conscious of
entire freedom from completely in her death
and having no specially intimate relations,
such as would have been forced and unna
tural, l felt regret at her death intensified
by the evidence OF her previous fall the
same regret that others similarly related to
her felt. As was not her murderer, l did
not feel like her murderer, and therefore
did not act IS her murderer. Nothing short
of this, however, would have satisfied those
who looked On me as her assassin"
In the chapter about the watch key. after
discrediting the idea of Joel being able 10
identify it as his property, he closes as fol-
lows
But with ell this have nothing to do.
Suffice it to say that my solemn declaration
in the light Of eternity is that this watch
kew, which has been called the pivotal eyi
dence in the case and which seems to have
had so much weight with the Governor in
deciding him against executive Interference,
was never mine and was never seen by ne
until this trial began"
With reference to a confession. he says
Judging from the newspaper paragraphs
there is considerable anxiety that | shall
Confess" I did not see F. L. Madison
during the day and the night of the 18th Of
March. This is all the confession have to
make.
VIRGINIA NEWS.